EDUCATORS DISCUSS NEW MISSOURI GOALS

Missouri has set as its goal some high standards in public school education, but how those goals are going to be realized is still up for debate.

"We have to listen to a host of ideas in order to meet the challenges of education in the 21st century," said Missouri Commissioner of Education Robert E. Bartman, who was in Cape Girardeau for a conference Thursday to help gather ideas.

The Regional Educational Conference at Central High School drew educators, administrators, students and community leaders from throughout the area. The conferences are annually held across the state by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Bartman's speech and a video titled "Meeting the Challenge: Providing Superior Public Education for All Missouri Students" provided an overview of the long-range school improvement plan adopted in November 1998. Then participants were given a chance to talk about current educational issues and suggest ways the state can effectively support local school improvement efforts.

That school improvement plan includes goals of high achievement in 2005, a focus on reading and math and early childhood education, diverse and equitable learning opportunities, greater access to technology, safe schools, more time for learning, recruitment and retention of well-qualified teachers, promoting learning beyond high school and expanding state and local partnerships.

Focusing on a few of the goals, Bartman said time matters in education.

"We have to capture time, especially for those students who need extra help," he said, urging districts to consider tutoring, Saturday classes and summer school programs to not only provide remedial help for students having trouble learning but enrichment programs for those students who want to learn more.

Bartman also emphasized the importance of spending money on quality teachers.

"Teacher compensation has to be enough to signal the value of the work teachers do in the classroom," Bartman said.

And while most public education doesn't begin until kindergarten, Bartman said early childhood education from birth to age 5 is needed to prepare children for school.

He praised parents as teachers programs that many school districts now have.

"Parents are the first and best teachers," Bartman said. "Giving parents the skills to teach their own children is important for the future success of these children as students."

After Bartman's speech, Susie Rohrer, principal of Truman Kindergarten in Farmington, said she has been pleased with the push for early childhood education.

"I see students now who are more prepared for kindergarten than in years past," she said. "I want to see this effort increased and continued."

As participants divided into groups for discussions of school improvement, some had questions about implementing performance standards.

David Todd, superintendent of the Clarkton School District, said he agrees it is important to hire qualified teachers, but he has found that difficult.

"There's an extreme shortage of counselors, secondary math teachers, secondary science teachers and special-ed teachers," Todd said. "It's hard to hire qualified teachers if they are not there."

Amy Jackson, principal in the Risco School District, said smaller districts like hers have problems with space and instructional tools.

"We're working now to get a grant for math supplies," she said, noting that more such grants would help smaller districts with the supplies teachers want and need.

Figures Bartman gave during his presentation seemed to show educators are headed in the right direction.

He said in the last decade Missouri schools have made significant forward strides in graduation rates, numbers of full-day kindergarten programs and standardized test scores.

"We are working hard to improve education," said Shirley Schweitzer, principal of Puxico Elementary School. "This has confirmed that what we are doing is right."